


The Future’s Open Wide

by mcgarrygirl78



Series: The Grove [10]
Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - High School, Drama, F/M, Family, Friendship, Humor, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-07
Updated: 2014-10-07
Packaged: 2018-02-20 05:32:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,994
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2416697
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcgarrygirl78/pseuds/mcgarrygirl78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“It’d be like Einstein getting rejected from McBurger University.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Future’s Open Wide

“I say breakfast first, then the mail.” Derek said.

“No way!” JJ exclaimed. “I won't get my appetite back until at least two of these are opened.”

“I can go either way.” Elle added.

“We already know that sweetie.” Garcia replied.

The brunette gasped, laughed, and gave the blonde a light punch on the arm.

“I don’t feel comfortable doing anything until Hotch and Emily get here.” Reid said. “We’re all in this together.”

“Where are they?” JJ looked at her watch. “You told them eleven, right Morgan?”

“Yeah, and Hotch has never been late for anything in his life. He is either early or right on time…it’s almost eleven thirty.”

“We’ll give them 10 more minutes and then I’ll call Em’s house.” Garcia said. “I mean, not that I feel like anything bad happened; I totally don’t.”

“There’s Hotch,” Reid got up on his knees in their large, semi-circular booth in the back of the Georgetown Diner and looked out the window. He waved and Hotch waved back.

“Is Emily with him?” JJ asked.

“Isn't that an insane question?” Elle asked. “I think their limbs and muscles are attached to each other. I mean, it’s kinda cute but…nah, it’s not really.”

Derek smirked, thinking they could at least order some drinks. He held his hand up and their server, Samantha, came over to the table. She was wearing her usual jovial smile.

“Are you guys ready for some breakfast?” she asked as Hotch and Emily walked in hand and hand. “I'm thinking not.”

“Coffee all around.” Derek said, matching her smile.

“Including you, Spencer?” Sam asked. 

“Yes please.” Reid nodded.

“You got it. Hey Hotch; hi Emily.”

“Hey Sam.” The couple spoke in unison before sliding into the booth, Hotch on the end.

They were crowded in but never seemed to mind. There was Derek, Elle, Penelope, Kevin, JJ, Reid, and now Hotch and Emily. Hell, there were nights when they made it work even with Jason and Dave. Friends didn’t mind squeezing.

“I'm sorry we’re late.” Emily said. “I slept through my alarm and my parents didn't know I had plans until Hotch rang the bell.”

“It’s cool,” Elle said. “Let’s get this over with so I can eat. This place smells so good I am about to chew off my own arm.”

“Coffee first,” Derek said. “Then we do it.”

“The answer inside the envelope is surely not going to change.” Reid said.

“Thanks kid, cuz I didn’t know.” The football player smirked.

“I have to agree on coffee first.” Hotch stifled a yawn.

“Late night?” Kevin asked.

His inquiry was perfectly innocent but it got a laugh all around the table; even Reid grinned. He knew that Hotch had the world’s best poker face…legendary at the Grove. When Emily Prentiss came into the room however, the armor fell with an unceremonious clatter.

“Actually yes. I have two weeks to finish a ten page term paper and a fifteen minute presentation on the Presidency of Harry S. Truman. Its 50% of my grade.”

“Please don’t tell me you spent Friday night doing homework, IRS?” Elle rolled her eyes. “Derek, do you have no influence over his brain whatsoever?”

“Hell, I should be working on my own project.” Derek replied. “I'm doing John Adams.”

“His contributions in building the foundation of what would become the United States of America are overshadowed by the man who came before him _and_ the man who came after.” Reid said. “Some of Adams’ ideas are still in place even today.”

“Is that an offer to help?” Derek asked.

“Sure. I'm done my project on Woodrow Wilson.”

“Taken.”

Sam came back with coffee and the table fell silent. They were all holding their futures in their hands…it was now or never.

“I say we just start tearing them.” Elle said. 

“We need a little order.” Kevin replied, adding cream to his coffee. “I say we open our top choices, order breakfast, and work out the rest.”

“Good plan,” JJ said. “I like it.”

They all agreed by nodding, everyone taking a deep breath. 

“We open on three.” Derek said. “One, two…”

“Wait!” Hotch exclaimed.

“What's the matter?” Derek eyed him.

“What if it’s a rejection letter? What if they don’t want me?”

“You cannot be serious? Yale is not going to reject you Hotch; not in a billion years. It would be like Einstein getting rejected from McBurger University.”

“I'm not that smart.” Hotch replied.

“Your grades say something different, boss.” Garcia said. “You’ve got valedictorian on lock.”

“I should know,” Kevin added. “I'm #2.”

“But what if…?”

“Oh Hotch, c'mon,” Elle sighed loudly. She grabbed the envelope from his hands and gave it to Derek. “Open it babe; put the poor boy out of his misery. Put me out of mine.”

Derek looked at Hotch, who silently nodded his approval. He tore the end off and slid the piece of paper out. Hotch’s world began to move in slow motion as Derek unfolded the paper. He cleared his throat as if about to announce the next Miss America.

“Dear Mr. Hotchner, congratulations on your acceptance into Yale University, class of 1994.”

“Are you serious? Derek, are you serious?”

“Hell yeah! I would never joke about that.”

Hotch practically leapt across the table, whooping for joy, into Derek’s arms. His friends were shocked as they had never seen Hotch display such emotion. Even Emily was surprised. Derek just laughed, hugging his friend back. He had known Hotch for a long time and knew that there was still plenty to learn about him.

“I hate to interrupt the love fest but I would like to open mine now.” Elle said.

“Sorry,” Hotch sat back down, clutching his acceptance letter to his chest.

Under the table, Emily squeezed his hand. He looked at her and fell in love with her smile all over again. Derek counted to three and envelopes started tearing. Elle was looking for good news from Barnard, Derek from Northwestern, Georgetown for JJ, Yale for Emily, and American University for Kevin. Reid also had a letter from American. He had already received early acceptance from Cal Tech and his safety schools of Yale, Stanford, and Penn. He would probably end up attending American. He was only going to be 14 when starting college and surely could not be far from his mother in her delicate condition.

Soon the whole table broke up in an eruption of excitement. Everyone was hugging and cheering. They all had been accepted into their first choice colleges; Derek and JJ receiving the extra benefit of full athletic scholarships for their respective sports.

“This calls for a celebration,” Elle pulled a platinum Visa out of her jeans pocket. “Brunch is on my dad!”

“For me too?” Penelope asked. She had one more year before this pandemonium.

“Of course Garcia. Everyone get whatever you want.”

“I have to make a phone call,” Hotch stood up. “I’ll be right back.”

“We’ll order your pancakes.” Morgan said.

“Thanks.”

“Are you going to call Jason?” Reid asked.

Hotch nodded and Spencer wanted to talk to him too. The older boy beckoned with his hand and the girls laughed as the skinny, short teen shimmied under the table and popped up next to Hotch.

“We’ll be right back.”

“My parents will be very excited about this.” Emily said.

“Yours? I think my mom is going to fall down on her knees and thank Jesus. This is a full scholarship.”

“I knew that silly pigskin had to be good for something.” Elle said.

“You thinking about a professional career?” JJ asked.

Derek shrugged. Coach told him that he was good enough; so did all the scouts who offered him everything from women to cars just to consider their programs. This was Northwestern University…this was about more than football. He loved his sport; put a lot of heart and dedication into it. Still something told Derek it was better not to depend on his fickle body when his nimble mind could take him further. This was Northwestern University; this was his chance.

  
Sam came back to the table to take their massive brunch order. The teens were ebullient, talking, laughing, and more than ready to eat after driving themselves crazy with college choices. There were actually many more envelopes to open but getting into your top school made all the rest a breeze. The four months of high school left, the term papers, school plays, tests, and battles, it didn’t seem to weigh as much when you knew what was coming after. The whole world was laid out in front of them...it was hard not to feel invincible.

“Did you reach Jason?” Emily asked when Hotch and Reid came back to the table.

“We left a long, rambling message on his answering machine. It’s sure to give him a good laugh later.”

“What did I get for breakfast?” Reid asked.

“I hope you like worms, kid.” Derek replied grinning.

“Not especially.”

“Don’t worry boy genius,” Garcia tousled his hair   “We got you hash browns and bacon.”

That was Reid’s favorite. He was a picky eater and his friends knew that about him.

“Damn, I wanna celebrate.” Derek said.

“That’s what we’re doing right now.” JJ replied.

“No, I mean…does anyone else feel it? Does anyone else feel as if they can leap tall buildings in a single bound?”

“I'm feeling pretty high.” Kevin admitted.

“I wanna…I just wanna…” Derek’s train of thought was interrupted by Bon Jovi over the PA system. “I wanna sing Bon Jovi with my best friends. Who’s with me?”

They were all with him, and eight teenagers crunched into a booth at the best diner in the world broke out with _Living on a Prayer_ as if their lives depended on. No one bothered them, they were regulars, and most of the patrons gathered from the hoopla that they were getting college acceptance letters. Hotch ate his brunch laughing, talking and remembering in the back of his head that life wasn’t always this carefree.

Soon they would be scattered; virtually on their own. Saturday brunches, parties at Elle’s house, and date nights would be a thing of the past. There would be new friends, new pressures, and new challenges. It would take a while for them all to get up from the table and separate even today. Good friends were not a dime a dozen, they were like gold. 

Time and distance might chance thoughts and outlooks but these moments would hopefully bond them forever. Hotch would always love Emily. He would always look after Reid and Penelope.  He knew that Derek and JJ would be by his side even if he had to run through the depths of hell. He knew Elle would always be there for a laugh, a hug, or a very stiff drink.

“Earth to Hotchner.” Derek waved his hand in front of Hotch’s face.

“Hmm?” he looked up.

“Fantasizing about Yale Blue already? I asked if you wanted to hang out later. Elle’s parents are in…where the hell…?”

“Paraguay.” Elle replied. “Don’t even ask; I have no idea.”

“Emily and I have a date tonight; American University has a classic film series. This month they're highlighting the films of George Cukor. We’re going to see _The Women_.”

“Oh my God, I love _The Women_!” Elle exclaimed, grabbing Derek’s arm. “Double date!”

“The queen has spoken. What time does it start?”

“8:30.” Emily said. “We can all meet outside the auditorium.”

“Sure,” Morgan smiled. “You owe me Hotch; a lot.”

Hotch laughed. Elle paid for brunch and everyone scattered with the promises of phone calls or seeing each other later. It would be so hard to leave this behind in just a few months. Was it possible to hold on tight and let go at the same time? Maybe that was a question Hotch could answer when he became an adult.

***

                                                                                                                                                                    


End file.
